


Blood Rose

by cathinda1



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mob, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate universe - Mafia, Blood and Violence, Bucky Barnes's Metal Arm, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Gen, Hydra (Marvel), Illegal Activities, Mafia AU, Mafia Boss Bucky Barnes, Mob AU, Mob Boss Bucky Barnes, Multi, New York Mafia, Protective Bucky Barnes, Russian Mafia, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-23 16:07:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30058032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cathinda1/pseuds/cathinda1
Summary: Bucky Barnes has been a part of the mafia for as long as he can remember. His father led them before him but he was quick to step up. So when Hydra come to challenge the most powerful and feared man in New York, it's down to him and his crew, the Avengers, to put an old enemy to rest before old fears and reoccurring nightmares are allowed to continue. But an old enemy is just the beginning.
Relationships: Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov, James "Bucky" Barnes & Natasha Romanov, James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers & Sam Wilson & Original Character(s), James "Bucky" Barnes/Original Female Character(s), May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker & Pepper Potts & Tony Stark, Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Sam Wilson (Marvel) & Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	1. The Smallest Coffins Are The Heaviest

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer - I have no real idea as to how a mafia works, so this is probably not accurate at all, but it was fun to write, so you can suffer it too.

George Barnes was not a simple man, nor was he a good one. He was cold, calculating, harsh, and unforgiving. There were very few people in this world that he could say he truly cared about, the only one who ever reached his mind was his son, his beloved son, James, Bucky to his friends. George couldn’t help watching the 12-year-old as he and his best friend, Steve, played pool in the pool room of the mansion that the Barnes family called home.  
“Boss,” Came a voice, grabbing George’s attention, he looked over to his second in command, Nick,  
“We’ve got word. They want a meeting.” George let out a breath, his eyes watching the two boys for a moment longer before heading with Fury to arrange a meeting with the Russian Mafia.

The gang war had been waging since before George cared to remember, certainly since before James was born. George settled into his seat in the conference room in the office front of the Mafia, waiting for the leaders of the Russian Mafia to arrive.

As the door opened, George and his men instantly reached for their guns, making sure that the Russians didn’t have the upper hand.  
“Barnes.” Came the voice of the leader of the Russian Mafia, Vasiliy Yahontov, as he entered the room, surrounded by his men.  
“Yahontov.” George responded, inviting the man to sit, “You proposed this meeting, what do you want?”  
“To bring about an age of peace.” The response made George raise an eyebrow, daring Yahontov to continue.  
“A peace treaty between our people.”  
“What’s in it for me?” George asked, not willing to let his surprise show as he waited for his enemy’s next line.  
“A future. I give my daughter to you, giving a secure, permanent alliance between our people.” George scoffed,  
“So I raise your child, and all I get is the promise of an alliance? No deal.” Vasiliy leant back in his chair, opening his hands, telling George to make his counteroffer.  
“Here’s what happens, you give your daughter to the New York Mafia and when you return to Russia, you announce her as the heir to your empire.” Vasiliy went to interrupt, but George silenced him with a raise of his hand, “and then, when she takes over, our empires will be united to be the most powerful on the planet. No one would dare to challenge us.” The two mafia bosses stared each other down for a moment before Vasiliy nodded, agreeing to the terms presented.

With a wave of his hand, Vasiliy signaled for his men to bring in the young girl. George noticed that she looked no older than his James, and her father was selling her for a peace pact. George’s blood boiled as the girl was pushed towards his men who easily caught her and steadied her, it was clear she hadn’t been told what was going on. The next time George looked up, Vasiliy was ordering his men out of the room, leading them back to their cars while his daughter shouted after him.

It took nearly 30 minutes for the girl to calm down enough to consider what was actually happening to her. She glanced around her at the armed men watching her before bowing her head in submission. George motioned for his men to stow their weapons before he took a cautious step towards the girl,  
“It’s ok, you’re safe, it’s ok.” He told her, crouching down to be eyelevel with her, the girl’s eyes were like a deer caught in the headlights – full of fear,  
“Do you speak English?” The girl nodded causing George to let out a breath,  
“What’s your name?”  
“Inessa.” She whispered,  
“Well, Inessa, we need to leave here.” Inessa nodded, following a step behind George as he led her to one of the cars.

The mansion was huge, and Inessa struggled to contain her awe in the ways her father had taught her. She followed the man into the house, already realizing that he was the leader of this gang.   
“Boys!” He called as soon as they had stepped inside, startling Inessa out of her thoughts. She tensed as she heard two lots of footsteps come running down the hall, her hand snaked towards the knife stitched into the lining of her jacket but stopped short when two boys, not much older than herself, came to a stop in front of the man.  
“Boys, this is Inessa,” Inessa tried not to shrink as they both watched her, “Inessa, this is my son, James,” The dark haired boy gave her a nod, “and this is Steve.” The blond gave a wave. Inessa gave a shy wave back.  
“Boys, Inessa’s going to be staying with us for a while, so show her around.” With that, George left the three kids stood in the doorway.

It didn’t take long for Inessa to become friends with the boys, becoming the third troublemaker around the mansion, causing their tutors to pull out their hair in irritation at the trio. They were inseparable, wherever one went, the other two weren’t far behind. George couldn’t help but feel amused at the three friends, but also anxious, he could tell that the friendship could lead to problems in the future, especially when Inessa had to make her choice between where her loyalties would lie, but that was a problem for another day.

By the time Bucky and Inessa were 15 and Steve was 14, George had decided that it was time for them to begin taking their place within the Mafia ranks. Steve could say easily that he was beyond pissed off in the fact that he didn’t get to go on jobs with his best friends, he’d been told he was still too young to go out in the field so was stuck doing write-ups in the office.

Bucky and Inessa stuck to the shadows as they followed their mark, a man with ties to Hydra – an organization that was attempting to rival the New York Mafia. Bucky motioned for Inessa to stop when he saw the man talking to someone. Within seconds, arms wrapped around Bucky and Inessa, both fighting their attackers off, but they were outnumbered by 10 to 1, they fought as hard as they could, but were taken down after only a few minutes.

Inessa blinked awake, trying to clear the blurriness in her eyes as she tried to remember what had happened. It all came crashing back to her: the job, the attack, getting captured. Instantly, Inessa began fighting against the bonds holding her to the chair, but she barely moved thanks to the cuffs at her ankles, her wrists, her upper arms, and her abdomen. Inessa froze as the door opened, deciding to remain silent no matter what. She watched the man who walked in cautiously, trying to determine his threat level and trying to figure out a way out,  
“Hello little pet. We’re going to have some fun.”

By the time George heard about the capture of Bucky and Inessa, two days had passed. No one was safe from his anger after he’d been informed that his son and ward were missing, not even his closest confidants. Nick Fury was doing everything within his power to try and track down where Hydra had sent the two teenager, but it was futile, there was no trace of them anywhere. Nick was working every contact he had in order to find the two teens, but nothing was working.

It took 16 months to find the two teenagers, the entire mafia seemed to be involved in the rescue, but only those in the Inner Circle were allowed close to the kids, George was hesitant as he entered the cell where the pair were being held, terrified of what he would find. Inessa was the one to move when the door opened, taking up a defensive position in front of Bucky, she didn’t care how weak she was, she just needed to protect him. Her wild eyes settled the slightest amount when she saw George,  
“Nessa, step away, we need to help you both.” He muttered softly, trying to calm the teenager down enough to get her away from Bucky. It took several moments before she stepped away, her defense of him not dropping though. George watched the girl but was quickly distracted when the medic grabbed his attention,  
“Got a problem Boss!” George ran over to his son’s side, his eyes widening in horror when he saw that Bucky’s left arm had been replaced with metal.

By the time the group had arrived back at the mansion, the medics had been forced to sedate Inessa in order to let them get close enough to Bucky to check him over,  
“Boss, the metal plating under his skin… it’s connected intricately to his nervous system, his circulatory system… there’s no way to permanently remove them.” George watched the heartrate monitor keep track of his son while the doctors tried to treat him.   
“We’re gonna need someone who can upgrade that arm.” George muttered before leaving the room. He knew just the man: Tony Stark.

Panic filled Inessa as soon as she woke up, the wires connected to her, the machines… she began fighting them, trying to pull them out, she wanted no more of Hydra’s chemicals inside her. As soon as everything was disconnected, Inessa cowered in the corner of the room until her eyes landed on Bucky. Her James. Her Jamie. The memories of the day before came flooding back: George, their people, being rescued. On silent feet, Inessa made her way over to Bucky before climbing up onto the bed beside him, her tiny form cuddled to his side, minding the wires as she settled against his shoulder.   
“Ness?” Bucky croaked, not daring to open his eyes.   
“Hey.” She whispered back, no fear in her voice anymore. It was all the reassurance that Bucky needed before he tightened his arm around Inessa, being careful of the wires.

George stood silently in the doorway to the medical suite, his eyes fixed on the two teenagers lying asleep on the one bed, his son’s arm wrapped tightly around his ward. He was waiting for the nutritionist to arrive and give him a meal plan to help the pair recover from a year and four months in Hydra’s claws. Turning around, George resisted the urge to roll his eyes when he saw Steve stood uncertainly,  
“I won’t disturb them. I just want to see them.” He pleaded, the youngest of the trio hadn’t been allowed in to see his friends the night before. Letting out a sigh, George stepped aside and let the 15-year-old see his friends,  
“Oh my God.” He muttered as he saw Bucky’s arm, a metal arm. It was only a moment later that George was leading Steve away from the medical wing, leaving the pair to rest. They needed it.


	2. M is for Mafias and Mobsters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time isn't always the kindest of healers, sometimes it just causes fear and hatred to fester and turn ugly. Or sometimes it can cause a person to be their most productive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is some light smut in this chapter

The music in the club rang loudly, the massive crowd dancing while spending more and more money on alcohol, more so than the rest of the week thanks to it being a Friday and the night was only just beginning. Inessa sat in the VIP section of her club, her oldest business besides her place in the Mafia, watching the patrons dance and drink while James conducted illegal business in the back room, she watched the bar closely, watching as more money went over the counter, increasing the night’s profits. This club on its own could make several hundred thousand dollars over a weekend, so a good Friday night always promised good things. Sam sat beside her on the couch, making sure she was safe while she waited for her lover to return,   
“You could always go and dance.” Sam offered, knowing how much the Russian loved to dance, a glare from Inessa and Natasha made Sam fall silent again. Laughter behind them grabbed their attention,  
“Laugh it up Stark.” Sam huffed causing the women to join in with Tony’s laughter,   
“I have to agree with Sam, mind,” came Peggy’s voice as Inessa rolled her eyes, she didn’t get a chance to protest as Peggy pulled both her and Natasha to their feet and led them away from the VIP section and onto the dancefloor.

Sam, Tony, and Scott Lang remained on the couch, their eyes trained on the three women, making sure that they were safe as they waited for Bucky and Steve to emerge from the back room with a new deal. It didn’t take long for the pair to emerge from the backroom, Bucky fixing his jacket and leather glove to make sure that his metal arm was completely hidden, not wanting to chance anyone putting it together with the infamous Mafia Boss ‘The Winter Soldier’. Here, he was just a businessman, not the Mafia King of New York. Bucky’s eyes darted over the couch and then further into the dancefloor, following the line of sight of the three men until he saw Inessa and the other two women on the dancefloor.

Without a word to his Inner Circle, Bucky headed out into the mass of people on the dancefloor until he found Inessa and the others, his gloved metal hand pressed against the small of her back, his index finger tapping twice below her bottom rib, letting her know it was him, she turned around, immediately wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing a kiss against his stubbled jaw, taking a deep breath of his scent. The other two women stepped away from the pair with a roll of their eyes, letting the pair have more privacy.   
“How’d it go?” She asked against his neck as they danced to the music,  
“No one died.” James joked earning an eyeroll from Inessa, he chuckled before continuing,  
“Went without a hitch, signed over 80% of the business to us. Completely legally, no way of pissing off Danvers.” Inessa rolled her eyes at the mention of the chief of police, the woman was more than willing to accept bribes and information from the mafia, but still tried to act superior to them in every way.  
“Let’s get out of here.” Bucky muttered pulling Inessa closer to his chest. Inessa quickly led Bucky over to the private elevator and took him up to the penthouse.

As soon as they were in the penthouse, the pair were pulling each other’s clothes off before Inessa had a chance to lock the elevator. Bucky lifted her off the floor, wrapping her legs around his waist, scrunching her dress up to her waist, as he carried her over to the bed, he threw her down before removing his shirt, tie, and holster while she removed her underwear and weapons. Climbing back on top of her, Bucky pushed Inessa down onto the mattress, capturing her mouth in a frantic kiss, his fingers playing with her folds as she began to moan against his mouth. She began trailing kisses down his jaw while Bucky toyed with her core. Her moans grew louder and more frantic as he pushed a finger into her, her face buried in his neck,  
“Please… please…” Bucky just chuckled at her needy whimpers, smirking at the way she came undone beneath his fingers. Inessa’s hands began to claw at his back leaving red trails across his skin as he drew her closer to the edge while her mouth sucked desperately at his neck. He smirked as he pulled away, leaving her whining for more, he dipped down between her legs, sucking her clit into his mouth, his stubble scratching at her folds, Inessa wrapped her legs around his head while her hands clawed at the pillow beneath her head. As her orgasm built, her legs tightened around Bucky’s head while he continued his ministrations until her orgasm caused her to cry out desperately, her fingers buried in his hair.

Bucky couldn’t help laughing as he kissed his way up her torso, taking each of her nipples into his mouth before crushing her lips in a kiss. Inessa easily flipped them, pushing Bucky against the pillows before slowly pushing down on his cock. It was her turn to smirk as Bucky’s desperate moans filled the penthouse, she began riding his cock while he held her hips in a bruising grip, leaning forward, Inessa captured his mouth with hers, swallowing his moans as she increased pace. Bucky’s flesh hand left Inessa’s hip, twisting into her hair, tangling it around his fingers as he increased the pace further, deepening the kiss and burying himself further into her until both were moaning deeply. It didn’t take long for orgasms to come crashing down over them both, leaving them breathless as Bucky kept Inessa riding and falling on his softening cock for a few more moments.

Back down in the club, Steve began looking around for the two Mafia Bosses, panic began to set in when he couldn’t see them,   
“Guys, anyone got eyes on Soldier and Ivy?” The Inner Circle all stood up, all reacting to the codenames that were used to prevent anyone who wasn’t supposed to know from hearing the identity of those who ran America. The groups eyes began searching the club only to come up empty, all trying not to move to prevent drawing any attention,  
“They leave?” Sam asked, glancing to one of the guards who moved to leave to club to check on what drivers were waiting outside. After a moment he came back in and shook his head. Steve dialled Bucky’s number only for it to go to voicemail, something that almost exclusively happened when Bucky had been kidnapped. The group dispersed, checking everywhere for their bosses.

Heading over to the bar, Natasha grabbed the attention of the bar tender, Jeff, calling him over to see if he knew where the pair had disappeared off to. No luck. After nearly ten minutes, Steve called the Inner Circle, letting them know that he’d heard from Bucky,  
“What the hell are they thinking?! They know they’re supposed to tell someone when they go off somewhere! They’re supposed to have a guard each no matter what!” Natasha hissed,  
“ _Even when they sneak off for a quick fuck_?” Clint commented back, earning a glare from Natasha from the other side of the bar. Circumstance didn’t matter, the pair were the people at the very top of New York, of America, they couldn’t just sneak off!  
“And if there’d been a bomb in the penthouse?” She shot back,  
“ _Enough._ ” Came Steve’s voice, “ _they’re fine, they’ll be down in ten._ ”

Bucky let his fingers trail down Inessa’s side as they stayed in the bed longer than necessary,   
“We need to get up.” He muttered, earning a hum of agreement from Inessa despite neither making an effort to move,  
“If we don’t, I think Natasha might scale the building to get up here.” Inessa commented, kissing Bucky’s shoulder as he laughed. Eventually, the pair did move to get up.

Inessa headed to her dressing room to find a clean dress to put on for the remainder of the night while Bucky pulled on a clean suit. Bucky fastened the cufflinks of his navy blue shirt before strapping on his double holster, sliding two of his three guns into place before sheathing his six knives, strapping one into the band on his ankle and making sure it was hidden by his pant leg, glancing at the door as he pulled on his tailored black suit waistcoat and jacket and tucked his third gun into his inner pocket before buttoning both articles, leaving his tie on the back of the chair. He headed into the lounge of the penthouse, grabbing his phone from the couch, and pulling on black leather gloves as Inessa emerged from her dressing room in a blood red dress, pinning her hair into place before slipping on her black stiletto heels, she turned around, letting him zip up her dress, he knew she also had multiple guns and knives hidden in her outfit. Bucky, not even trying to be discreet, checked Inessa out while she grabbed her purse, checking it for her gun and phone before Bucky offering her his arm and leading her to the elevator.

As soon as the elevator opened at the club floor, the pair were being led by their guards over to the VIP section,   
“Where the hell were you two?!” Natasha hissed as soon as the pair had sat down, the VIP bar tender, Martin, poured the pair a whisky each.   
“Want a diagram Romanov?” Inessa asked, daring Natasha to overstep. Natasha settled her own glare over to Inessa, neither willing to back down,  
“Hey! Russians! Put the claws away.” Came Bucky’s voice, Inessa didn’t move until Natasha had sat back. As soon as Natasha had let her own glare fall, Inessa settled deeper into Bucky’s hold, resting against his metal shoulder as his hand rested on her knee.

The mafia bosses fell silent as their friends continued to chat pointlessly about whether Natasha needed a diagram for sex,  
“I mean, if Clint isn’t performing well, I think there’s medication he can get…” Inessa commented causing the group to laugh louder than ever while Clint spluttered for a defence. Bucky couldn’t stop himself from smirking at his friends,  
“C’mon, let’s go get outta here.” Her stated, causing the group to gather their weapons, sheathing their knives, and holstering their guns before summoning over their security.  
“Food?” Bucky suggested, meaning that the group would be heading to one of the many restaurants the group owned.  
“Sure, any chance we can pick up Pepper first?”  
“Meet us there, Stark.” Bucky offered, waiting for Sam and Steve to walk and security to be surrounding the two bosses in the middle of the group as they were led from the building.

Multiple security cars were waiting for the Inner Circle,  
“Take Tony to his tower, meet us at the Compound.” Inessa told one of the drivers, the man nodded and led Tony and his head of security, Happy Hogan, towards one of the smaller cars. The rest of the group waited until Tony had pulled away to begin to move,  
“Scott? You headin’ home?” The man nodded in response to Bucky’s question, it was his weekend with his daughter starting tomorrow so they knew that Scott wanted to go home early. Scott headed away from the group with his own security guard. Scott was the latest to join the Inner Circle, only having been with them for little over a year, despite being with the mafia for over 10 years.

The rest of the group split between three cars; Peggy and Steve at the front, two security cars in front of then, another one behind, then Bucky and Inessa with Sam riding shotgun, two ranks of security bikes surrounding their car, then Clint and Natasha with two security cars with them, each group would be taking a different route before meeting at the restaurant.

Inessa settled back against the plush leather seat as Bucky took off his gloves and jacket, flexing his metal arm and rubbing where metal met flesh, Inessa watched in concern as Bucky closed his eyes in discomfort. Raising the partition screen, Inessa turned her attention to her lover,  
“Babe?”   
“’S nothin’ Doll, ‘M fine.” Inessa just raised her eyebrow, not believing him in the slightest, she reached over pressing her hand against his chest, right at the space where she knew the metal plating under his skin ended, covering his heart and part of his left lung as well as not quite reaching his spine at his back.   
“We can get Stark to give it a look tomorrow.” She suggested softly, Bucky just shook his head, muttering that it was just the usual irritation he got with the arm. Inessa let out a sigh, knowing that there was nothing she could do to help him with this.

As the car came to a stop, Bucky slipped his jacket and gloves back on before his chief of security could open his door. Bucky made his way around to Inessa’s side of the car, offering her his arm as he led her into the restaurant, it had already been checked over by security to make sure that the group would safe. Sam followed the pair into the restaurant with Steve and Peggy while the rest of the group continued to pick on Clint as they sat down and waited for Stark and Potts.

Tony and Pepper hadn’t long arrived when food arrived, letting the group settle down and act like any other group of friends, not deadly assassins and mobsters. Inessa couldn’t stop herself from occasionally glancing over to Bucky, her concern from the car still remaining despite his reassurances that he was fine. The rest of the group did their best to act as though the behaviour wasn’t concerning, but they weren’t doing a great job of it.

By the time the group had finished eating it was approaching midnight, the Inner Circle were still drinking and talking when one of the highest security personnel for Bucky and Inessa came over, whispering something into Bucky’s ear that made him to ghost-white. Instantly, silence filled the table as they waited for information.  
“I want a full write-up. Everything we know. I want it in a folder by the time I get home.”  
“Yessir.” The guard left the group, talking into his comm as he left.  
“Buck?” Steve asked cautiously, watching his best friend,  
“We need to go.” Bucky said, the group didn’t hesitate but all shared a look of confusion. Bucky’s hand fell to Inessa’s back, ordering higher security around her, the order just caused Inessa to raise an eyebrow as she watched him.

As Bucky led the group outside, he ordered them all be taken to the mansion, once there, he’d tell them what he’d been told. Inessa watched Bucky silently, not wanting to disturb him from whatever had caused him to become so terrified so quickly. Bucky gripped Inessa’s hand tightly in his metal one, not wanting to let her go, not wanting the memories to come back.

The group sat silently in the lounge of the mansion, waiting silently as Bucky skimmed over the report he’d been given by a member of the mafia. Inessa was the first to speak as soon as the doors had closed, and the lower members of the guard had left the room.  
“James, what’s happened?” She asked softly, Bucky sat down next to her, taking her hands into his,  
“They’ve found him. They’ve found Pierce.” Inessa was off the couch in an instant, pacing the room as she tried to stop an oncoming panic attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a review


	3. Time for Murder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew are introduced to who Pierce is and a Gang War begins across New York, making wandering the city at night even more of a risk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the positive response xx.  
> I will continue to try and post a new chapter every Friday  
> This chapter does contain gang violence, mentions of mutilation, and blood

The group all sat frozen, trying to figure out what was going on between Bucky and Inessa as well as figuring out who Pierce was. After several minutes, Bucky pulled Inessa into his arms, letting her collapse against him as he whispered small reassurances to her in Russian. It took a while longer before the pair of them sat back on the couch.  
“Ok, maybe a dumb question, but who’s Pierce?” Pepper asked, glancing around to make sure that she wasn’t the only one confused,  
“Even I’ve never heard the name…” Steve muttered, Inessa glanced up at Steve, her eyes soft for a moment as she considered the amount that had been hidden from him about Hydra.  
“He’s a bastard.” Bucky seethed, trying to get control of his emotions, Inessa was still too out of it to talk,  
“He’s a high-up in Hydra, second after Arnim Zola. You know that name.” Steve nodded silently, the others knew of the name, not what it meant to Inessa and, more predominantly, Bucky.   
“Thought you’d’ve taken him down years ago.” Sam muttered,  
“Pierce disappeared. We got Zola and Pierce vanished. Hasn’t been seen until now.” Bucky told them, wringing his hands as he tried to settle his mind.

“Pierce is mine.” Inessa hissed. Bucky’s eyes shot to hers,  
“No. Nessa, you go after him-”  
“You had Zola! Pierce is mine!” She snapped, Bucky let out a sigh, the others in the room didn’t matter at that moment. Bucky turned his focus solely to Inessa,  
“I know what he did, Nessa, I just…”  
“James, I remember the knife in my hand and him watching. I remem… I remember you…” Inessa couldn’t bring herself to finish speaking as she looked to Bucky’s metal arm briefly, still covered by his jacket and glove. Bucky wrapped his arms tightly around Inessa, letting her seek comfort from him.  
“I remember the injection, I remember having no choice. I tortured for them, but the first blood on my hands was yours. I remember him disappearing, like the fucking coward he is.” She whispered brokenly, shaking as she tried to stay focused.

The Inner Circle sat in stunned silence, they knew that they were to never ask about how Bucky got his metal arm, nor about the 16 months that the couple spent captured by Hydra.   
“Inessa… what are you saying?” Clint asked softly, trying not to end up with two guns aimed at his head. Inessa and Bucky shared a look before both nodding. The pair sat back down on the couch,   
“Steve, what’d you remember of when Dad brought us home?”   
“I remember not being allowed to see you guys but sneakin’ into the med wing only to see Nessa crouched in the corner and you lying on a bed with so many… so many wires connected to ya, and a metal arm.” Inessa glanced over to Bucky, hoping he would tell the rest of the story, tell the group who Pierce was.  
“When we were there… this was in the first two or three weeks, when we were there, they kept us separated, Nessa was with Pierce…” Bucky fell silent not sure how much to say. The group didn’t need to know everything.  
“He tortured me. Burnt me, beat me, anything he could do, he did. And then he forced me to torture for Hydra. If I didn’t, he’d put a bullet in James’ lung and let him choke to death on his own blood. He toyed with me for one year and four months until we were rescued. He’s mine to kill.” The group sat silently not sure how to react until Bucky spoke up, dismissing them and saying that they’d call a meeting in the morning with the hitmen, spies, and torturers within the mafia that would be able to bring in Pierce.

Once the group had left, Bucky dismissed the guards, leaving just him and Inessa in the lounge, he pulled her into his arms, only this time he had no intention of letting go. With Inessa sitting on his lap, he breathed in her scent before speaking again,  
“Doll, you don’t have to do this alone.”   
“I can’t… Hydra wasn’t the ones to take your arm, Jamie.” Bucky’s steel-blue eyes filled with sorrow as he watched his lover,   
“Their orders.”  
“I held the knife. I watched them inject you, making it so you couldn’t pass out. I remember being ordered to cut. Remember the knife being too blunt. Remember have to saw away for what felt like hours. You scre… you screamed the whole time. It wouldn’t go through the bone, had to cut deeper into your shoulder. They put the barrel of a gun in your mouth to silence you. Told me to hurry or they’d pull the trigger. I remember when your fingers stopped twitching.” Bucky’s arms tightened around Inessa, keeping her closer still.  
“I remember the pain. I remember the straps on my wrists, around my chest, the collar ‘round my neck fastened to the table. Remember the gun in my mouth but not being able to be quiet. I… I remember you, crying. The only time I’ve ever seen you cry Doll. You held the knife, but Hydra held the gun, Hydra held the power, we didn’t.”

The pair didn’t move, electing to remain on the couch a while longer in order to seek more comfort from each other.  
“If Pierce really is back, we’ll need all hands on deck. I’m not letting him get away again.” Bucky just nodded silently before standing up, Inessa held in his arms, her arm slung loosely over his shoulder. He knew that it was personal, it was for both of them, the Inner Circle had no idea just how deep it went, no idea who this man truly was. Pierce wasn’t just the cause of their nightmares; he had given them their names. He had been the first to label Bucky the Winter Soldier and Inessa as Poison Ivy.

The following morning brought a lot of tension as Bucky and Inessa headed to their main office, the front of the Mafia. As soon as they arrived, they were escorted up to one of the larger conference room where their trusted people (their crew leaders) were waiting for them. Once the door closed and security had left the room, Inessa pressed a button under the desk that sealed the room, allowing Bucky to start a completely private meeting.  
“If anything said inside this room is discussed, the consequences for those involved will be unfathomable.” The men and women in the room nodded, not daring to argue.  
“We’ve got a new job. Hydra’s back.” Muttering around the room interrupted Bucky, but one glare made the room fall silent again,  
“They’re back with an old leader of theirs,” Steve passed each person a file containing all information that they had on Pierce and Hydra, “this man is to be brought to the warehouse, none of you are to kill him unless you have absolutely no other choice.”   
“And what’re we doing with the others?” One of the men, Dugan (Dum Dum), asked,  
“Kill them. Hydra are vermin, they used to have associations with Nazis, they disappeared from the city about 20 years ago, headed into the South. They weren’t a problem, so we let them be. Pierce is an old enemy of ours, of both the Avengers and the Russians. He’s got a death sentence, but that’s not yours to carry out.” Dum Dum raised an eyebrow at Inessa’s words, it was rare for the woman to really take charge during a meeting like this one, usually posing as in charge of the legal business.   
“We need Hydra gone, they’re a problem dating back decades. I want them out of my city, out of my country. We gave them a chance before; we won’t be doing so again. Leave no survivors.” With that, Bucky pressed the button under the desk, unsealing the room, signaling that the meeting was over.

After the crew leaders had left, leaving just the Inner Circle, Sam turned his attention to his friends,  
“Any chance the Russians are gonna want in on this?” Inessa shook her head,  
“They’re dealing with their own problems.” She muttered cryptically, the Inner Circle didn’t really have many dealings with the Russians any more due to Inessa stepping back from being leader to just being the figure head while her brother, Dmitry, took over.   
“We need to tell Scott. If he’s with his kid, Hydra’s gonna be watching like a shark. He needs to be ready for anything.” Clint nodded at Bucky’s words, leaving the room to make the necessary calls.   
“What’re we doing?” Steve asked, only for Bucky to pull out a folder. He opened it to reveal the blueprints for a building.  
“That’s a base our guys have identified as Hydra. We’re gonna go clear it out.” He muttered,  
“Gear up.” Inessa ordered as she left the room, heading to change into her gear for a job.

Reconvening at the cars and bikes, the group shared a look, all taking one last moment to consider the fact that they had been at peace for years but were about to declare an all out gang war. Inessa and Bucky were both covered in leather, each had a mask and goggles but while Bucky’s metal arm was on show, Inessa was completely covered, she also had a hood that pinned to her mask, covering her hair. Steve was in a deep blue bulletproof suit designed by Stark while Sam, ever the Falcon, had an arial attack suit strapped on, two carbon fiber wings would open when he needed them. Natasha and Clint were similar to their bosses; clad in leather. All of them had countless weapons including Clint with a bow, Steve with a circular ‘shield’ that was more lovingly referred to as a ‘death frisbee’. Bucky had a grenade launcher, several machine guns, multiple hand grenades, and countless knives. Natasha had her miniature shocking discs known as Widow bites while Inessa had infused knives and bullets, each one packed with poisons and chemicals that would cause unimaginable pain and death shortly after. One more nod from Inessa and the group headed out.

The bikes screamed down the road, the cars not far behind, the group pulled to a stop in a warehouse just over ½ a mile from the Hydra base. Once off of the vehicles, the rest of the crew pulled on masks that covered their mouths and noses, Steve and Sam also pulled on goggles while Natasha and Clint grabbed out bags full of ammo, passing one to each person before they all put in their comms. Sam spread his wings, lifting himself off the ground slightly, once the rest of the group was ready, Bucky and Steve led the group towards the Hydra base, Peggy was back at the base, clearing the streets through the police on their pay roll.

As the warehouse came into sight, the group dispersed, heading to their vantage points. Steve, Natasha, and Inessa stayed in the shadows while Bucky and Clint headed for a better sniper’s point and Sam took off into the air, ready to take down any Hydra men on the roof.   
“I count 40.” Sam said as his pet robot Redwing scanned the building,  
“We’re outnumbered,” Bucky muttered as he and Clint settled into their vantage point,  
“Yeah, but only by like 20 to 3. We’ve seen worse odds.” Natasha shot back as she, Steve, and Inessa charged at the building, firing at any Hydra personnel that they saw.

Clint and Bucky followed their friends into the building after a moment, Clint hanging back while Bucky charged in, grenade launcher in hand, taking out any others that he saw. As the group reconvened and Sam made his way down the stairs from taking out the assailants on the upper floors, the group fell silent, waiting for Bucky to make the next move. The sound of movement of the stairs grabbed their attention, as did the sound of a dozen guns cocking. The crew each reloaded their guns, Inessa grabbing a machine gun from Bucky, before turning to face the enemy and opening fire at the ring of Hydra soldiers surrounding them, taking down at least 40 more soldiers than they’d originally spotted.

It took them far too long to thin down the Hydra ranks, taking a few bullets themselves, but eventually, they eliminated most of the threat, only leaving them against the crew leaders of the base. One of which was a familiar face,  
“Rumlow.” Inessa hissed so that only Bucky would hear her. She didn’t need to see her lover to know that his eyes widened. Rumlow had only been a boy when Inessa and Bucky had been held by Hydra, but he had been more than willing to hurt them, the pair knew that he would recognize them in an instant.   
“Y’know, after so long, you’d think you would find a new look.” Rumlow scoffed, his glare fixed on Bucky who reached up to remove his mask, throwing it to the ground, letting his blue eyes settle an equally terrify glare on Rumlow.  
“You’d think you’d stop hanging around with Nazis.” Rumlow just held his hands out as if he was impressed with himself. Inessa tightened her aim on Rumlow, not letting her fear overpower her.  
“Where’s Pierce?” Bucky demanded, causing Rumlow to scoff and shake his head,  
“Where’s your whore?” Bucky just raised an eyebrow, keeping his expression in check at the fact that Rumlow didn’t recognize Inessa’s fighting style.   
“So, Pierce is in the city.” Bucky commented causing Rumlow to splutter, “he still let you play at being boy-king?” Rumlow couldn’t comment as Bucky nodded. He was instantly filled with bullets, killing him before he could react.

Making their way back to their cars, Bucky called in their clean-up crew to clear all evidence of what had gone down in the warehouse.  
“Great. We’ve managed to narrow Pierce down to one of the 8 and a half million people.” Inessa snapped as she threw her guns into the trunk of one of the cars, her mask still fixed on her face and hiding her anger.  
“Nah, more than that. Eight million is how many live in the city.” Natasha pointed out. She had her own history with Hydra, a different section, but she understood Bucky and Inessa’s anger.  
“We’ll find him Doll.” The rest of the crew ditched their weapons, Sam took off his wings, leaving them in the trunk as well before climbing into the drivers seat.  
“Anyone injured,” Inessa asked after a moment, deciding to focus elsewhere. The crew checked themselves over discovering that Clint had been grazed on the shoulder and Bucky’s arm had been damaged.   
“Get to Stark’s, we’ll get fixed up.”

Tony couldn’t deny that he hated the mobs, but he also couldn’t deny that he liked the extra money and respect that it brought, even if it did mean that Stark Tower was regularly seeing the Inner Circle of the New York Mafia, known as the Avengers. Today was no different, Tony stood in the medical suite, watching silently as the crew were checked over and their injuries dealt with,  
“He was just a kid when we met him, two or three years older than us, but he’d sold his soul to Hydra like we’d given ourselves to the Avengers. Difference is we don’t butcher innocents.” Bucky commented, Tony had missed most of the conversation and knew that it didn’t concern him, leaving him out of the loop.

Inessa sat on the bed, fuming as she watched the engineers go near Bucky’s arm, she hated when they touched it, she watched as he flinched minutely with every touch to the arm.   
“What do we do now?” Sam asked after his thigh had been bandaged,  
“You take a step back.” Came a new voice in the doorway, Bucky and Inessa shared a look, suddenly grateful for the curtain between them and the rest of their crew.  
“Chief Danvers. To what do we owe the pleasure?” Steve asked in a sickly-sweet voice.  
“That little stunt at the warehouse, very messy.” Inessa let out a breath, moving around the curtain, leaving Bucky hidden as he pulled on his long-sleeved shirt and his leather gloves,  
“What warehouse? Carol, we’ve been working all day.” Inessa stated, perching on the bed Natasha was sat on,  
“Oh yeah? Then where were you Yahontov?” Carol dared, trying to get the Mafia Queen of America to slip up,  
“I was at my nightclub, last night was a busy night, we needed to do a stock take. All hands on deck.” She stated easily.  
“Explain the bullet wounds.”  
“I’m shocked you didn’t hear about it. There was a shoot up on the street outside, we were there to help. We’re good at that.” It wasn’t a lie, there had been a shooting on the street, a different crew was taking down a Hydra nest that had taken post at the Blood Rose club.

Carol took a breath, looking around the group in front of her, knowing that she had no evidence to charge them with anything, she never did. As soon as Bucky stepped around the curtain, Coral’s glare hardened, she knew that the group in front of her were the Mafia, but she had no way to imprison them.  
“Think it’s time you left, Chief.” Bucky stated, his hand secure on Inessa’s waist as the group stared Carol down until she backed out of the room, spitting something about criminal outlaws.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment and kudos xx

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a review, let me know what you think


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